BRAISED GREEN BEANS IN TOMATO SAUCE
I grew up eating green beans stewed in tomatoes—huge amounts of olive oil, sometimes paprika, and the beans cooked to the point of collapse. I thought that was special to Spain, but then I started seeing the combination in other Mediterranean kitchens. While traveling in Greece, I was lucky enough to meet Aglaia Kremezi, a cookbook author who lives on the island of Kea, one of the most beautiful and unchanged of the Greek islands, a place that still lives by the rhythms of the Aegean. She served me this incredible green bean dish, very similar to the one I grew up eating but with the addition of potato. I love how the same ingredients and ideas travel across giant spaces and get reinterpreted by time and circumstance. Which means you can add a new touch—a spice, fresh herbs, another vegetable—and write your own chapter in the long history of tomatoes and green beans.
SERVES 4 TO 6
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 cups coarsely chopped onions
Kosher salt
3 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
2 pounds young green beans, ends trimmed
2 teaspoons Maraş or Aleppo pepper or a good pinch of crushed red pepper
1 pound Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1½-inch cubes
Freshly cracked black pepper
1 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
4 or 5 ripe tomatoes, cored, quartered, and pureed in a blender (about 3 cups), or one 28-ounce can diced tomatoes, with their juice
Crusty bread
Crumbled feta cheese (optional)
Heat ½ cup of the olive oil in a large enameled cast-iron casserole over medium-high heat. Add the onions, sprinkle with a few good pinches of salt, and sauté until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, beans, Maraş pepper and sauté, stirring often, until the beans are softened, about 10 minutes.
Arrange the potatoes on top of the beans in one layer, pressing down to nestle them in snugly. Season with salt and cracked pepper and sprinkle with all but 2 tablespoons of the parsley. Top with the tomatoes and bring to a boil over high heat. Cover, reduce the heat to medium-low to maintain a simmer, and cook until the beans and potatoes are tender and the tomatoes have broken down, about 25 minutes; stir occasionally and check periodically to make sure there’s enough liquid in the pan, adding just a little water if the sauce becomes too dry. Season again with salt and pepper.
With a slotted spoon, transfer the beans and potatoes to a serving platter. If necessary, increase the heat and cook the sauce until it thickens. Pour the sauce over the beans and potatoes, sprinkle with the reserved parsley, and serve warm or at room temperature, with crusty bread and, if you like, feta cheese.
Aglaia likes to switch out half of the green beans for another vegetable—small zucchini or even okra. Like I said, play around and put your own stamp on this lovely Mediterranean dish.